Agreement

Agreement refers to the grammatical alignment between different parts of a sentence. It is essential for ensuring clarity and coherence in communication.

Subject-Verb Agreement#

This is the most common type of agreement. The verb must agree in number (singular or plural) with its subject.

Examples:

• Singular: The cat runs quickly.
• Plural: The cats run quickly.

Rules:

• If the subject is singular, the verb must be singular.
• If the subject is plural, the verb must be plural.
• Collective nouns (e.g., team, family) can be singular or plural depending on whether the group is acting as one unit or as individuals.

Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement#

A pronoun must agree with its antecedent (the noun it replaces) in number, gender, and person.

Examples:

• Singular: Every student must bring his or her own lunch.
• Plural: All students must bring their own lunches.

Rules:

• Singular antecedents take singular pronouns.
• Plural antecedents take plural pronouns.
• Indefinite pronouns (e.g., everyone, anybody) are usually singular.